1. Field of the Invention
The present invention lies within the scope of hydroponic cultures, namely cultures without earth, the object being to achieve a substantial simplification of the facilities and an equally substantial increase in yield.
The invention is furthermore related to the device for implementing said procedure.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known that a hydroponic culture consists in an artificial culture process normally performed in shallow buckets to which a fertilizer liquid is added with a formulation that meets the nutrient requirements of a specific type of plant being grown, so that with adequate lighting, which may also be artificial, and adequate concentrations and proportions or nutrients dissolved in water, the plant growing conditions are optimal, providing far greater crops than those obtained by traditional methods.
A series of other advantages are furthermore achieved, such as greater plantation density, perfect overall root and plant protection against pathogenic agents, etc.
However, hydroponic cultures present a vitally important problem in regard to the plant's physical support means. The root of a plant plays a double role, namely that of absorbing the nutrients required by the plant and that of providing a physical support for the plant by taking root in the ground.
Hydroponic cultures do not require earth and therefore the plant's traditional physical support means disappears, thus requiring said traditional support to be replaced by some other means having no detrimental effect on the crop in any of the above aspects. In this regard, inert matter such as high granulometric sand is used as a rooting physical support means, although this sand is occasionally difficult to obtain, is quite expensive and also poses several limitations to the farming facility as a result of its nature and weight.
Furthermore, although sand is in fact an inert matter, it may carry harmful germs to the plants, as initial thorough washing step therefore being essential, which furthermore has a negative economical effect.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,823,500 discloses a method for hydroponic culture using a unit for hydroponic culture forming multiple channels based on superimposed strata perforated allowing multiple cascading paths for the liquid fertilizer as well as a staggered path for the plant roots through the different strata which constitute also a physical support for the plants. However, the units used in said method do not include slanting parallel filiform supports.
EP-A 0 406 458 discloses a device for hydroponically growing plants comprising a laminar body of an indefinite length formed by a pair of superposed layers of water-impervious material, interconnected along a longitudinal edge thereof and sealed along sealing lines extending transverse to and spaced along the longitudinal direction of the laminar body. However, said device does not contain holes along the median line of the dihedron or additional intermediate bodies with additional holes.